10 Vancouver Craft Beer Bars for Flavourful Liquid Gold

Vancouver city’s coastal vibe stretches from its movie sets to mountain peaks, but perhaps best of all are the popular bars and pubs where you can order a great craft beer while you soak up all Western Canada has to offer.

Vancouver is known for its year-round snow resorts, breathtaking outdoors and playing host to the Golden Goal of the 2010 Olympics. And this is Canada after all, so all of those things are only made better with a great tasting craft beer.

It’s becoming more common for beer drinkers to opt for a thick-flavoured craft brew than the watered down drivel flooding most beer commercials. Vancouver steps up its game by offering a number of great spots to choose from.

The following is a list of Vancouver places worthy of checking out for a fresh craft beer and some great company. Share this around to all your beer drinking buddies or anyone else who thinks craft beer belongs alongside hockey and canoe sex in the finer Canadian lifestyle vocabulary. This isn’t a full run down, so don’t forget to check out our complete listing of Vancouver bars, restaurants and pubs to fill up on hoppy liquid gold. Be sure to let us know if we’ve missed one of your favourites by submitting it with the place suggestion at the bottom.

Toting the distinction of having the largest selection of draught beer in Canada, the Craft Beer Market in Olympic Village is a large restaurant and bar where you can taste some of the best craft beers from all over the globe. They tap about every variety you could imagine, including wheat, cream, amber, blonde and stout. They also receive new cask beer from local breweries each and every week and present a monthly Brewmaster dinner series where food and beers are paired. Their menu items are made in house and they are part of a number of sustainability programs. To top it off, their keg cellar can fit 450 kegs, so don’t worry about drinking them dry. Show up and let your liver deal with your beer greed.

Calling themselves the "Modern Tavern", the Alibi Room is proud to host 50 taps of local and imported beer. Despite being a Vancouver heritage site, their processes are modern, only using locally sourced and ocean friendly meats for their menu. Speaking of, it’s small but delectable, featuring starters, salads and a few entrees and sandwiches. Their passion for beer prompts them to give pairings for menu items, but they also provide wine and cocktails if that’s more your thing. A rotating cask selection, as well as sporadic US keg imports means there’s always something new on tap.

With over a hundred and twenty Belgian and craft beers, Biercraft offers a beer loving environment like few others. For starters, the servers are Cicerone Certified from the Craft Beer Institute, meaning they've been educated on proper sales and service. Suddenly the classic question “What do you recommend?” holds more weight. Biercraft’s taps pour bitters, stouts, ciders, lagers and ales to name a few, with plenty more offered in bottles and cans. If you’re feeling peckish they serve lunch, dinner and brunch, as well as afternoon and evening tapas items. They offer combo specials for pairings and play host to numerous and varying beer-pairing dinners.

Named for the patron Saint of beer, St. Augustine’s is a craft beer house and kitchen that changes daily and, when it comes to beer aficionados, change is good. They have over 60 taps of craft beer, which involve locally sourced beers that are constantly changing and rotating. At any given moment you’ll find a whole host of IPAs, Lagers, Stouts, Creams, Ciders and Ales from all over. The “Live Beer Menu” on their website not only shows you what they’re currently serving, but lists how much quantity they have left. So if you see your favourite dropping below “10% remaining” you’d better run down and get a final pint. They supplement your thirst with a gastropub menu of classic pub foods and introduce a new cask every week to keep your beer taste buds fresh.

Down in the heart of Kitsilano, The August Jack labels itself as Vancouver’s only food and craft beer pairing restaurant. Their craft beer list stretches all over the world and features close to 50 items served in both draught and bottle, while their menu stretches from surf to turf, offering mussels and oysters to steak and pork loin. Their shellfish is farmer direct and their meats are ethically raised: bonus points. Not only do they attempt to regularly switch up their beer taps, but they do the same with their menu as well. They change varieties with the seasons, ensuring patrons always have a new food and drink pairing when they visit.

Besides having a pretty bad-ass name, The Butcher & Bullock offers a bar, pub and laid-back lounge style all rolled into one. They've got a selection of 28 craft and domestic beer, also offering custom made cocktails and an extensive wine list. Big tables, comfy chairs and a number of screens make this a popular spot in the business district to catch a game with some friends. Their menu goes from pasta to pizza to paninis, with specials featured every day of the week. If the sports aren't cutting it or you just want out of your seat, they've got a pool table, video games and when they aren't hosting live acts there’s a jukebox to rock out to as well.

Portland Craft is like a wooden beer lodge from Oregon plopped into the middle of Vancouver. The interior looks like the place a more modern version of Paul Bunyan might hang out at if he weren't a giant. Inspired by the Portland food and beer scene, Portland Craft offers craft beer selections that rotate regularly, maintaining around 16 on tap at any given time. They've got a fair sized menu as well, divided into Evening, Brunch and Light sections, with only a dozen items costing over $10. Periodically they will host beer events, sometimes inviting local brewers to do a “Tap Takeover” to showcase their own flavours.

Bitter’s two page menu might seem a little overwhelming, but it’s simple: there’s beer and then everything else. For draft, there’s a short list of their eight rotating craft beers, featuring BC craft brands. There are new and upcoming selections in addition, not to mention the 50+ brands they serve in growlers. They don’t serve these to go, sadly, but nobody’s complaining about bigger jugs to drink from. While it may be the highlight, the beer is complimented by lots of traditional pub fare, including chili, sandwiches and pickled eggs. They add to this with cocktails, whiskey, scotch and wine. If you can’t decide, the servers will be happy to help you with “Flights”, multiple 5oz selections focusing on style, country or season.

Hosting just over 20 taps of craft beer including seasonal and even exclusives, Tap & Barrel proudly pours in true British fashion with 20oz pints. You’ll find all the classics from Lagers to Wheats, Ales to Bitters and Stouts to IPAs. They also have a rotating selection that showcases select BC crafts. The food menu is all locally sourced and boasts items like the Quebec Street Poutine Burger, Fried Pickles and then you can wash both down with a Chocolate Beer Float. If beer isn't your thing, don’t fret, they’re not called the “beer and barrel”. Tap & Barrel also offer a large selection of red and white wines... on tap!

With a stock of 30 rotating taps and also filling up 20oz imperial pints, Darby’s is a Kitsilano staple offering great BC craft, domestic and international beer. Crafts range from Vancouver and Victoria to outside of province and country. Like most of their beer stock, their food menu supports BC as well, using local growers and suppliers. Darby’s plays host to live entertainment every week, has HD TVs for sports and has even been known to host Beer Battles between local brewers. With all of this, including daily and weekly specials, you might want to take some of the experience home with you. Luckily, you can. Darby’s is also a liquor store, selling many of the same beers they pour and other hard-to-find BC craft favourites.